Democratic delegates revel in their diversity in Philadelphia

By Isaac Stanley-Becker, The Washington Post

PHILADELPHIA — They stuffed the confetti — fistfuls of red, white and blue — into their bags. They doubled up on placards bearing her name, one in each hand as they poured out of the Wells Fargo Center, small American flags peaking out of their pockets.

But the most coveted souvenir of all was the poster bearing a simple “H,” with no words, superimposed on a heart. For delegates to the Democratic National Convention, the poster captured a vision of America, and of their candidate, which they felt was embodied by their convention here this week — inclusive, optimistic and, yes, even loving.

While the convention was not without its share of divisions, between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders supporters, many delegates found that vision and this convention deeply moving and came away with a sense of solace and resolve in the midst of a trying summer.

“Stronger together” was the theme of the convention’s final night, but a slogan for the whole week might as well have been the line delivered by Hillary Clinton in unison with her audience: “love trumps hate.”

The pluralistic message resonated with delegates in part because of the diversity they exhibited. Inder Pahwa, a Sikh member of the California delegation, said he never feared for his safety wearing his turban at the convention all week. What he saw in his fellow delegates, he said, was that the Democratic Party was “open to everyone.”

That embrace of difference was also reflected in the roster of speakers and performers, which included blacks and Latinos, children and disabled people, an abundance of women as well as the first transgender person ever to address a national political convention.

“The convention has done an excellent job of unifying people of all races, religions and sexual orientations,” said Bri Golden, a black delegate from Baton Rouge, La. who stood with her fist in the air as the Rev. William Barber II spoke of the redemptive power of love. He asked: “Is there a heart in this house? Is there a heart in America?”

Golden, 23, choked back tears as she explained what the diversity on display at her first political convention meant to her.

“I’ve never seen the country so divided,” she said. “But here, everybody’s represented – I look out and I see color everywhere. I’ve never felt this kind of unity before, not even in church.”

Barber, a Protestant minister, turned the arena into a house of worship. In other moments, it became a comedy club. Or a concert mosh pit.

Democrats appeared to take more joy in the political ceremony than did their Republican counterparts last week in Cleveland, where many seats were left open in the arena. Democrats returned each night for a discrete, tightly-packaged theme; party unity on Monday and children and families on Tuesday. Wednesday was about ‘working together’ and focused on leadership abroad. Each night was interspersed with introductory videos and negative advertising against the Republican nominee, Donald Trump.

Clinton didn’t rely on media personalities and little-known lawmakers to deliver her most pointed critiques of her rival, or on people she employed to testify to her own character. Instead she trotted out the sitting president and vice president, her most fervent primary opponent and every prominent member of her party to speak glowingly on her behalf.

Each night’s political messaging was also punctuated by celebrity appearances and musical performances.

Katy Perry, whose hit song “Roar” has become a Clinton anthem, performed Thursday, turning the political convention into a pop concert as delegates swayed, waving their illuminated phones in the air. It was the same night that delegates viewed a biographical video about the nominee, produced by Shonda Rhimes, whose TV shows have brought her enormous name recognition, and narrated by Morgan Freeman, whose portrayal of God in the film “Bruce Almighty” lent divine associations to his deep timbre.

It was a far cry from the first convention that Walton McLeod, a South Carolina state representative, attended as a page in 1956, when Democrats nominated Adlai Stevenson for president.

“The only song I remember was ‘Happy Days Are Here Again,’ which they played over and over again for some reason,” he said.

Even compared to 2012, said Robert Rodriguez, a delegate from Denver, this year’s convention had a technological edge, taking full advantage of social media to draw viewers into what is, at its heart, a formulaic political undertaking.

The aesthetic appeal of the venue, and the quality of the biographical information about Clinton, helped unify the party throughout the week, Rodriguez said: “Now even the Bernie people are cheering.” But not all of them.

Many supporters of Bernie Sanders, the Vermont senator who endorsed Clinton after losing to her in a bruising primary battle, refused to make peace with the party’s standard-bearer.

Some made their dissent known as late as Thursday night, shouting during Clinton’s remarks, only to be drowned out by her supporters chanting her name.

Jack Simel, a New York delegate, said the Democratic argument that “America is already great” rang hollow for people without jobs or those concerned about the country’s oil dependence.

“Not one word of it is true,” he said.

But for others, the convention managed to bridge that divide, rather than widen it.

Hetty Rosenstein, a New Jersey delegate and the state director of the Communications Workers of America, said the party’s policy ideas – as set down in the platform – came to the fore this week, in keeping with Clinton’s admission Thursday night: “I sweat the details of policy.” She said Democrats are gearing up for a “big fight over real issues” in this election, which has forced them to reaffirm their values in contrast to the politics of Trump.

When that much is at stake, she said, “I don’t care about all of this,” gesturing to flags and placards dotting the arena.